Midway Realizations Verse
by Lone-ranger1
Summary: John and Sam have just begun to work out their attempt at a relationship. Added scenes and inner thoughts as the events of Midway unfold. Continues directly from Realizations Redux. Read that first :D


**Midway – Realizations-Verse**

_A/ N: Just added scenes to Midway in my Realizations AU, Might want to read Realizations Redux (Follow Author Link) first… That's REDUX, not the original. Gateworld Transcripts came in handy while writing this :D_

_I own NOTHING! _

_----------------------------_

"_Big waves… we're talking Tsunamis." _John was worried, Ronon was like a brick of C4 when it came to diplomacy. He'd stay quiet and stable until the first spark, then all hell would break loose.

Sam had figured the same, and had planned for it. "_I thought about that. Now, his interview's not for three days, so I've asked somebody to come to Atlantis and coach him."_

John furrowed his brow and looked at Sam. "_Who?"_

Sam grinned, it seemed like such a perfect idea. _"I don't think you've met him. Teal'c of the Jaffa."_

John raised both eyebrows in surprise. _"You mean the big quiet guy who's always with General O'Neill?" _Lorne's words were still fresh in his mind from his morning conversation with the man. The timing was… disturbing.

Sam snickered and nodded. _"The very same. I figure he and Ronon might actually get along."_

John blinked a few times, then rubbed his chin pensitively. _"If by get along you mean stare at each other… stoically…" _

Sam rolled her eyes, and shook her head idly. _"We'll see. Let's go eat, I'm starving."_

They both got up and left the room, nobody really noticing or caring that the two leaders were walking together to the mess noticed John looking a little nervous, and lowered her voice. _"What's wrong? You look…" _Sam shook her head, unable to deduce John's state.

John shrugged, and tried to look sheepish. _"Just… something Lorne told me when I told him about..."_ John chuckled softly. _ "Something about General O'Neill ordering Teal'c to kill me if and when he found out about… us."_

Sam raised both eyebrows and suppressed the laugh. Deep down it was a concern of hers if and when Jack found out about her and John's… relationship. But she'd made her choice now, and Sam was going to stick by it through hell and high water. _"I wouldn't worry about Teal'c. I think he'd just be happy for me… us… if he found out."_

John still wasn't completely assured. _"What about General O'Neill? I mean… apart from the rules…"_

Sam shook her head, and smiled confidently at John. _"I don't think we'll have to worry about him. He and I…" _Sam remembered her conversation with Jack about Pete… and the way he put it so succinctly with… _**'I wouldn't be here.'**_

John saw Sam was lost in her thoughts, and groaned softly. _"Look, I really don't wanna know what it's like to get my ass kicked by a General and a 100 year old alien who makes me look like a teenager. Just tell me it'll be okay and I'll be happy."_

Sam giggled, and gave him a playful shove. _"It'll be okay John. Just… let's keep it as quiet as possible."_

John found little argument with that plan.

_----------------------------_

"_You look well Colonel Carter, Command has been good to you…"_

Sam smiled at Teal'c, it had been almost a year since last seeing him and he always managed to make her grin. _"__Thanks, Teal'c. It took some getting used to. Military protocol's pretty relaxed, but I like it here."_

Teal'c narrowed his eyes, as if examining her wording. _"I have not seen you this content in a long time. I am pleased for you."_

Sam continued to lead him to the gym, but saw that Teal'c had noticed something. It wasn't possible that… well… Ronon had been able to guess about her and Sheppard by smell alone. And as far as Sam knew, Teal'c was even more perceptive. This… could get complicated. But for now, Sam couldn't do much more than go along as if everything was normal… and cross that bridge only if it had to be crossed.

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Sam couldn't help but feel a little nervous. She now had quite possibly the two greatest warriors from 2 different galaxies on the same base. Perhaps her thinking that Teal'c could teach Ronon something of diplomacy wasn't the best thought out plan. Certainly John had called out exactly what Ronon was going to do.

Sheppard had been a little reluctant for the two warriors to meet. Exactly why he wasn't saying though. Entering her officer and seeing him going over some figures and bouncing a ball made Sam roll her eyes. _"You know if you break anything in here you're paying for it."_

John looked up, smiled, and bounced the small rubber ball against the wall. _"Good thing its review time, so I'll have enough of a raise to pay."_

Sam snickered, and with a deft hand, reached out and plucked the ball from his reach. _"You were right. Not more than 5 words between them."_

John grinned, and he stretched his arms as he yawned._ "They'll warm up eventually… or try and kill each other but I'm hoping that'll happen when I'm off duty."_

Sam rolled her eyes. _"That's… not encouraging." _

John got up and rolled his head around in soreness. _"Missed you last night."_

Sam blushed, and smiled softly. _"Well… Ronon could smell you out. Teal'c'll probably just __**look**__ at me and know."_

John chuckled, and patted her on the shoulder. _"I'm gonna go grab a bite. You coming?"_

Sam shook her head, too much time spent with her second in command and people might get suspicious. _"Nah, but bring me back some iced tea would you please?"_

John scoffed softly, and gave her a joking salute. _"Sure thing, but don't wait up."_

Sam rolled her eyes and picked up her tablet. John's ease of returning to their diatribe was encouraging. Maybe they could work this out with little difficulty. _"Don't let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya!" _

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It had been almost an hour and a half. Where the hell was John with her Iced Tea?

Sam couldn't help but remember one of her shop teachers in college promising to go get a wrench she needed, then disappearing for two weeks. He'd quite literally just forgotten about Sam and her robotics project and gone off to do his own thing. Sam never forgot that as she had waited almost an hour before going to find him.

She stopped a passing marine who seemed to be in a hurry. _"Corporal."_

The marine stopped, but looked like he was in a rush. _"Yes Ma-am?"_

Sam furrowed her brow. _"Have you seen Colonel Sheppard? And where's the fire?"_

The Marine Corporal got the hint of a smile, and motioned with his head. _"You might just want to follow me Ma-am. It'll explain things a lot faster."_

Sam blinked, and then nodded as she got in tow. Whatever was going on, Sam noticed that more people were heading towards…

'_Oh crap… the gym… and I hear cheering.'_

_---------------------------_

_­_

"_You do realize they'd still be fighting even now."_

John shrugged, and kept his stance. _"Probably. I remember hearing something about not knowing someone until you fight them so it seemed appropriate."_

Sam rolled her eyes and curled her fist and menaced him jokingly. _"Well if you wanted to get to know me, you could have just asked."_

John laughed at her thinly veiled threat, and pulled her into a hug. _"Maybe I want __**you **__to get to know __**me.**__"_

Sam laughed as she pushed away playfully at him. They were on a very secluded balcony and even so, Sam didn't want anyone to see them _"I thought I already did." _She leaned forward and gave him a peck on the lips. _"But I guess we're gonna have to spar later on."_

John narrowed his eyes at Sam, and his smile hid nothing. _"Don't think I'll go easy on you… Only way to learn is facing stronger opponents."_

Sam smiled back just as deviously, and pushed out of his grasp. _"In that case, I've got to ask Teal'c a favor before he leaves." _Sam grinned at Sheppard's half stunned expression, and then added. "_Oh and uh… could you try and smooth things over with Ronon? I know he's probably a little angry at me for stopping the fight."_

John nodded, and shook as he felt the tingles go down his spine from being so close to Sam just now. _"Yeah, Chewy's not gonna like it, but hopefully they don't keep fighting on Midway."_

Sam winced at the thought, and left the balcony to go say goodbye to Teal'c before he left. John went in the opposite direction, hoping to find Ronon.

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Teal'c smiled in friendship towards Sam as the gate dialed. _"It gives me great pride to see how the people of this expedition have embraced you as their leader – as I knew they would."__  
_  
Sam smiled back, and felt a little bad that she hadn't had more time with her old friend. _"Thanks, Teal'c." _She leaned forward to give Teal'c a hug, glad that Teal'c was being so supportive of her.

Little did she expect Teal'c's next words. _"I presume I should not speak to General O'Neill of your relationship with Colonel Sheppard?"_

Ronon was already heading towards the gate, and Teal'c voice was cleverly camouflaged by the active Stargate. _"I'd ask you how you know… but I don't think it matters… I guess you must be curious."_

Teal'c simply smiled, and nodded to her. _"I simply wish to know you are happy Samantha Carter. That is all that is important."_

Sam sighed contentedly, just happy that Teal'c was going to support her no matter what. _"I am… and yeah… if you could keep it to yourself?"_

_  
_Teal'c bowed his head and began his walk to the gate. _"Goodbye Colonel Carter. I look forward to my next visit to your new home."_

Sam checked her gasp. Teal'c had surmised it very succinctly.

Atlantis was her home.

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Something was wrong… very wrong. And Rodney was taking much too long to realize it.

Sam could feel it in her gut, and now as the realization sunk in John put it very concisely. _"__You saw the tech hooked up to the D.H.D. What else could they be up to?"__  
_

Sam had to get control of the situation. Earth was about to come under attack and Atlantis… and her men were the only things other than the SGC in the way… and for some reason Sam had the fear that the Wraith would have prepared for that. _"__All right, listen, we have to get to Midway. The Daedalus is back on Earth. Is there another way we can get there?"_

Rodney replied instantly, his brain quickly making the needed neural connections to form his ideas. _"Well, connect to the Bridge via another Gate in Pegasus."__  
_  
Sam had come to the same conclusion, but knew Rodney had more experience with Pegasus gates. _"Then we have to find one that's close to the outer edge."_

Rodney quickly typed on his console and the star map showed several Gates near the planet in question. He pointed one out in particular. _"There's M6R-125. We could connect to the Bridge through that, but I'd need to reconfigure the macro."__  
_  
Sam hid her wince, and knew what she had to do. It hurt like hell, but she knew John would agree. _"OK, get on it. Colonel, prepare a strike force."_

John couldn't hide the small hint of his smile. This was happening much too soon… but what better test could they ask for in their promise to each other than sending him on a last ditch suicide rescue mission? John certainly knew he was going and there wasn't a damn thing Sam could do about it.

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The thing about being in command is that you know your next order could be the last one your men will ever follow. Sam had sent men to their deaths, never knowingly, and never on purpose, but it still didn't take away any of the guilt or anger.

The scars on her body would never match the scars on her psyche… on her very soul as it were. And right now, a new wound was being formed… only time would tell whether it was a pointless wound, or something that actually had merit.

An entire Strike Team… plus John and Rodney. They'd both been relatively easy about going. Rodney could complain all he wanted but he knew what was at stake. Earth had been attacked…

Sam was sitting and eating silently. A full 2 weeks had passed since last contact with the Midway Station, and despite having contacted Earth and been reassured that Ronon and Teal'c had managed to stonewall the Wraith there, there was still no word about Midway… and the Strike Team.

Attempts were made on both sides to contact the station, but all had proved futile. That could only mean one thing… and it was the one thing Sam didn't want to think about.

It had been so easy to let him go. To order him to defy death and save their home planet. But now? Hindsight was always 20/20 and Sam didn't know if she could do it again… or if she would ever get the chance.

Major Lorne suddenly appeared in front of her. She'd not noticed him until he was mere feet away, testament to how strong her concentration was. _"Colonel… got a minute to talk?"_

Sam nodded, and motioned for Lorne to sit. They were well away from most other people and Sam knew what Lorne wanted to talk about ._"Yes Major… What's on your mind?"_

Lorne sighed and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. _"Uhh… well ma-am… I was… well… I'm assuming Colonel Sheppard told you… about the chat he and I had."_

Sam nodded, and she concentrated on the glass of iced tea in front of her. Suddenly there was an inexplicable urge to try and get it to telekinetically fly into Lorne's face. _"Yes Major… He did, and before you ask, yes, you have permission to speak freely."_

Lorne swallowed the lump in his throat and leaned forward. _"I just… I just want you to know I don't have any doubts anymore. I thought maybe there was going to be… well… not anymore. I don't know if I could have done what you and he did two weeks ago… and I know he's alive. I just know it."_

Sam smiled softly, and cursed that she still had the hope herself. If it all turned out badly, then it would hurt even more when it became a fact. _"That's what we're _all_ hoping for Major. And to be honest it wasn't easy. But thank you for your… trust. It means a lot to know you feel that way."_

Lorne nodded, and with a silent gait, he left Sam's presence.

And again, Sam was left alone with her thoughts…

Lorne was okay with it… Major Evan Lorne was okay with his two commanding officers sleeping with each other. It was the best news Sam had heard in weeks… and Sam couldn't help but think that maybe… just maybe it had come too late.

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Chuck tapped his headset and listened, he turned to Sam who had come as soon as the Daedalus arrived. _"Colonel, the Daedalus has arrived and they have the survivors from Midway. They're being transported to the Infirmary and casualty lists are coming in."_

Sam blinked once hard, and steeled herself to look at it.

There were so many names… almost the entire strike force had been wiped out. Midway was nothing but a radioactive wreckage… But Earth was safe… and perhaps mor importantly, John, Rodney, and the majority of Midway's crew were still alive. Was it wrong of her to worry more about the people under her command…. And the man she'd come to trust so implicitly than her own planet?

Sam couldn't help but feel assuaged, but she knew that losing so many people was going to be a blow to the Expedition for the next few weeks. She resisted running down to the infirmary right away, and instead took a moment to digest the information Daedalus was sending.

But…. Sam was the expedition leader… and Major Lorne could easily handle the influx of data. It would seem cold if she didn't go see them in the infirmary. _"Major, could you go over the information Daedalus is sending and have a report to me ASAP? I'm going to see how our people are doing."_

Lorne couldn't hide his gentle smirk, but he nodded appreciatively. _"No problem Colonel. I'll have it in an hour." _With his eyes, he gave her his blessing and encouragement.

---------------------------------

Rodney's words weren't encouraging, and now as Sam stood in front of John's door she hesitated.

"_I'll Try."_

How the HELL could he have said such a thing? John had basically asked Rodney to bring him within a hair of his life in order to save the others… and Rodney was still fuming over it.

John hadn't taken fire at all, but from what Dr Keller said about his examination, he was _still_ feeling like crap at having the atmosphere around him sucked out into space.

And yet again, John Sheppard had faked out the Grim Reaper. It was close this time though… too close.

Sam rang his doorbell, she needed to see him. To make sure he was actually alive and it wasn't just a dream. It took him a moment, but he opened the door and gave Sam a gentle, if somewhat sad smile. _"Hey."_

"_Hey"_

John looked like hell. His eyes were dark and bloodshot, his face tired and haggard even though he was freshly showered. John wore a loose black t-shirt, and sweatpants. Obviously he'd been moments from going to sleep. Sam couldn't help but feel bad for him and that protective instinct inside begged to be released. _"Wanted to see how you're holding up."_

John nodded softly, and motioned with his head. _"Come on in."_

Sam entered without argument. There was no one around, and if anyone asked, Sam was just here to check up on her Executive Officer. John moved almost lethargically, and Sam knew he must be hurting. _"Heard about the station… you alright?"_

John rubbed his face as he tried to will the pain away, but as he sat on the edge of the bed. _"Lost 10 men… almost died… still got the bends." _He sighed, and Sam sat down next to him. _"Guess Karma kicked my ass… 2 weeks with Dr Lee, Kavanaugh, and McKay in a jumper?"_

Sam winced, it sounded like an ordeal. _"Rodney says you locked yourself in the front. You weren't kidding."_

John laughed, and accepted the hand that came around his shoulders. He'd never specifically state that he needed that comfort, but it's not like he wouldn't allow it. _"Rodney kept breaking in to check up on me… can't say I blame him."_ John turned to look at Sam again. _"Lorne told me you've been… strong."_

Sam leaned in and hugged him. 3 weeks without John had been surprisingly difficult, and Sam realized it would have been like that whether or not this was between them. _"Had to… don't wanna lose this."_

John hugged her back, and whispered in her ear. _"Sorry I made you worry… But… you gotta know. It was worth it. I need to hear you say you'd do it again."_

Sam took a very deep breath, and nodded softly as she leaned on his shoulder. _"Yeah… yeah I would do it again."_ Sam saw the relief in John's eyes, and felt the tension rise in her own gullet. _"Not that I want to."_

John pulled her head close and gave her temple a soft kiss. _"I know..."_

Sam kissed him back, then whispered. _"Want me to stay?"_

John smiled, and chuckled softly _"You really shouldn't. God knows people are watching me right now."_

Sam knew it was true, and deciding that it would be better to wait right now. _"I'll tuck you in… you look like crap."_

John chuckled ruefully, and let himself fall back as Sam guided him into her arms. _"I __**feel**__ like crap. Can't wait to hit the gym tomorrow." _He nestled himself into her arms, content that he had someone who cared enough about him to help him sleep when he felt like his eyeballs were going to burst.

Maybe it would be difficult, and maybe they'd have problems when crunch time came, but for the moment, both John and Sam were happy to have each other in such a comfortable intimacy.

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_A/N: Wrote this in a day and night, just a nice little addon I think. The next Realizations-Verse thing I'll write is "The Last Man" which should be nice and angsty. Also will answer a question I've had for the past few weeks. _

_Expect "The Lost Tribe: Larrin Version" from yours truly in the next week or so as well. Also "Fractured Mirror" Part two of what is now a planned trilogy in the Mirror Universe. Mwah! Love you all :D_


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